Polycarbonate sheet helps make rail transit more secure

Pittsburgh, May 6, 2015 — Rail transit operation in Buenos Aires, Argentina, has always been an important topic. As an international metropolis, Buenos Aires needs functional and advanced mass transportation options. China South Locomotive manufactured a train that offers a ray of hope – its inter-city bullet train.

On the Sarmiento and Mitre train lines, side windows and doors traditionally made of glass are now made of Makrolon® TG polycarbonate sheet manufactured in Sheffield, Massachusetts, by Bayer MaterialScience LLC. The material’s durability and impact resistance help to protect passengers’ safety and security. At half the weight of a comparable glass substrate, polycarbonate sheet significantly reduces the trains’ weight, leading to reduced energy consumption and, in turn, less environmental strain.

Jiang Xin, vice-director, Technology Center of CSR Sifang Co. LTD, and also the train’s designer, said: “The maximum speed of these inter-city bullet trains is 100 km. Each train set on the Sarmiento line consists of nine cars, and each train set on the Mitre line has six cars. With each car able to carry a maximum of 310 passengers, doors and windows made of break-resistant polycarbonate sheet can bring security to tens of thousands of passengers.”

Bayer MaterialScience polycarbonate sheet is widely used for doors, windows, interior decoration, luggage racks and railway seat applications, as well as in rail transit facilities. Due to its exceptional impact strength, Makrolon® TG polycarbonate sheet minimizes downtime and costs associated with unexpected window repair and replacement. It’s designed for high optical quality and outstanding durability, and its advanced surface technology provides weathering and abrasion resistance. This lightweight polycarbonate sheet satisfies many impact, ballistic, low-smoke and flammability performance standards, including U.S. Federal Railroad Administration requirements, making it a great material choice for high-quality, strong and durable train cars. The many outstanding properties of Makrolon® TG polycarbonate sheet allow it to withstand vandalism and the rigors of daily service, therefore making it a secure and reliable material for rail transit applications.

Holly Lei, senior vice president, Bayer China, said: “Our rail transit group brings to the table a wealth of global experience. Utilizing this background, we supported CSR Sifang by providing a full technical exchange, which enabled them to successfully specify and install our polycarbonate sheet product into the Argentina project.”

The China inter-city bullet train is the first project that China South Locomotive exported to Argentina. The first 409 trains were delivered to Argentina in September 2014.

About Bayer MaterialScience:

With 2014 sales of EUR 11.7 billion, Bayer MaterialScience is among the world’s largest polymer companies. Business activities are focused on the manufacture of high-tech polymer materials and the development of innovative solutions for products used in many areas of daily life. The main segments served are the automotive, electrical and electronics, construction and sports and leisure industries. Bayer MaterialScience has 30 production sites around the globe and employed approximately 14,200 people at the end of 2014. Bayer MaterialScience is a Bayer Group company. Sustainability is central to the company’s business and is based around the key areas of innovation, product stewardship, social responsibility and respect for the environment.

This news release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer Group or subgroup management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Bayer’s public reports which are available on the Bayer website at www.bayer.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.

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